One of the keys to The Prosperous Life is to live debt free. So on this Independence Day Weekend (where our country freed itself from British rule and bondage), let’s take a look together and see if we can figure out how to stay free of the bondage of school debt.

I have been very interested in education ever since my first daughter was born. I read quite extensively about the state of education in the United States including books like: Who Owns the Children?: Compulsory Education and the Dilemma of Ultimate Authority, Child Abuse in the Classroom, and other books about how we got the education system we have today.

We ended up teaching our children at home. As they got older, my attention turned to college. I read several books about the state of college education to find out why it seemed so full of indoctrination. These were books such as [Imposters in the Temple] (By: Martin Anderson) [published: October, 1996] and The Diversity Myth: Multiculturalism and the Politics of Intolerance at Stanford (Independent Studies in Political Economy). At that time college debt was becoming a huge problem. Now it is even more so.

I was reminded of the school debt problem in the current issue of Consumer Reports in an article titled: “I Kind of Ruined My Life by Going to College.” The article stated that 42 million young people own $1.3 trillion in student debt. According to the Consumer Reports article, the financial impact is so daunting that 45 percent of borrowers say knowing what they now know, their college experience wasn’t worth the cost.

So what can you do to get a college education and yet avoid the debt?

1. The article recommended taking a year off after high school to figure out what you want to do. It said students that know what they want their degree in and stick with that throughout college come out with 40% less debt.
2. Look at colleges within driving distance of your home. Private schools and out of state colleges may have what you want for atmosphere and prestige, but they also will come with a hefty price tag. I would say that debt free beats atmosphere any time.
3. Decide to work to pay for part of the cost.
4. Apply for all the scholarships you can. Many scholarships go unclaimed each year. My kids even accepted scholarships from the Sonic Drive-in where they worked.
5. Look for a job in the field you are interested in that will pay for your college.
6. Pray and ask God to help you. Let Him know you want a college education, but you are not willing to go into debt to get it.
7. Make up your mind that you will not accept debt as the solution to your education needs.

To add a little to #1 above, many people that start college have no idea what they want to do for a career. So they end up changing majors several times and even schools. Therefore, they end up paying for and taking classes that will not apply to their degree. This is why it may take six years and the debt that goes with that to get a degree. When you change schools, the new school may not accept all the classes from the previous school. This adds up to a couple more years in school and much more debt.

One degree that gives a well rounded education and that is the BA foundation for the medical and law professions is a degree in Liberal Arts or Letters (different schools may use different titles). Some companies simply require you to have a degree, and then they will train you in the field they need.

So look for some scholarships, look at the job market, look at some local schools and talk with your parents or talk to your children and see what you can do.

Pray and talk to God about the situation, and make up your mind to think outside the box and not accept debt as the path to The Prosperous Life.

Live long and prosper.